| Author | Message | ||
| Sean Mormelo (Sventvkg)
Rating: N/A |
Was wondering what tools everyone uses or used to design your Buses floorplan. Is there a prefered software anyone would recommend, etc etc? Thanks. | ||
| FAST FRED Rating: N/A |
Simplest is masking tape ,on the floor, followed by a cardboard mockup when you Think your done. At the 3rd or 4th try (as bulkhead positions are more known) its great to use scrap ply wallboarard. (a buck or two a damaged sheet). Most coach shells will be slightly different against the outside walls , so the wallboard patterns are needed for different locations. Mark everything when your done , and it becomes perfect templates to use to build your custom interior . You will save far more than the templates cost when cutting the ply you will be building the walls and cabinetry and furnature from. Working on a computer or doing old fashoned blue prints is great if that has been your lifes work. Most folks have a very hard time translating a 2D plan into 3D mentally. But the reality of a mockup will disclose any flaws , not readily knowable with flat drawings FAST FRED | ||
| TWO DOGS Rating: N/A |
I started it a little different....went in the bays & drilled 1/8 holes up,& shoved pipe cleaners up ...Then went inside & put masking tape on the floor,all plumbing & electrical to go into that area | ||
| J.B.Phillips (Jbp)
Rating: N/A |
I know a guy who came over to see my Crown conversion. He told me and showed(cad print-outs) me what his coversion was going to look like.He also told me that what I was doing wasn,t going to work because I did not have a firm print-out of the whole plan. Later he quickly put together a temp lay out according to his cad prints, took a trip of 1500 miles and found out that his computer print out would not work once it was transferred into reality. I use a kind of go with the flow method. I have certain priorities that to me are very important. The rest of it will just flow together. I think Fred may be right. Paper is fine for a general layout but will it work in real life? I found out the hard way that no two sections of the bus roof are the same contour. Make templates. J.B. | ||
| Gary McFarland (Gearheadgary)
Rating: N/A |
Yeah, you can make a floor plan on paper that looks fine but is unworkable. things get harder once your space gets more confined. tape walls and cardboard cabinets are a good thing. Gary | ||
| Henry R. Bergman, Jr. (Henryofcj)
Rating: N/A |
Any good cheap wine in great quanities will allow anyone to think clearly in even four (4) dimensions at once. Or nearly soooss. We used cardboard boxes as somewhat imaginary bulkheads. Easy then to move around the planned stuff and see if there is enough room. Do it your way. Our planned (only planned at this point) base cabinets for the kitchen and head will be slightly... ...taller than normal, since it is painful for me and she to bend at the waist. Also we are trying to keep the... ...walkways/companionways/asles slightly wider than normal to allow future wheelchair access. Finally, we are also planning for adding the necessary grab handles where needed sooss someone slightly... ...physically handicapped can still move around. Have fun doing this and you will cut down on the number of bo boes. Merry New Year!!  | ||
| Sean Mormelo (Sventvkg)
Rating: N/A |
WOW! Some great advice. Thanks! | ||
| R.C.Bishop
Rating: N/A |
FF is dead on.....live with it a while, then go for your changes. Worked for us, and we are super pleased with results....(others might not be) Do it your way!! RCB '64 Crown Supercoach (HWC) | ||
| Chris 85 RTS
Rating: N/A |
I used a simple program called 3D Home Architect. It allowed me to layout the interior, size up my cabinets, locate doors, and even view the results in 3D. I then printed it out and used it as a guide for my work. I did not plan it down to a quarter inch and yes I had to adjust things a bit here and there, but I was very happy with how paper fantasy has turned into reality. Saved a ton of cardboard too. | ||
| Merlin Moon (Mrmerlin)
Rating: N/A |
I think any usable CAD plan MUST be based on accurate input. Which means measure the interior with razor accuracy, then and only then will you be able to create usable drawings. At least give CAD a try ... it may be to your liking. When it comes time to build cabinets, my CAD plans keep me out of trouble. | ||
| Gary McFarland (Gearheadgary)
Rating: N/A |
I've used 3D Home Architect, and CAD programs for this, as the spaces get tighter, things get harder to judge. Even in my house, the living room, kitchen, were easy, smaller areas, like the laundry, pantry, etc... were harder to judge. To each his own though. gary | ||
| R.C.Bishop
Rating: N/A |
I, too, use a CAD Program....Delta Cad....BUT...after living with it for a while. Tape the floor, if necessary use cardboard bulkheads, etc (I didn't) then refine it as you go.....and then Use a CAD program to get the fine measurements. Re-tape to that, if necessary, live with it a while, as you work inside the coach. You'll know when it is right. Works for me. RCB '64 Crown Supercoach (HWC) | ||
| FAST FRED Rating: N/A |
Another tip is to only assemble with screws with both Phillips and #2 driver style heads. If you assemble with the harder to drive Phillips , when you decide on a change, (you WILL) removing the item is fast & easy using the unused/undamaged and more powerfull # 2 square drive. Works for me, FAST FRED | ||
| Stephen Fessenden (Sffess)
Rating: N/A |
Take the time to find and buy a large quantitiy of square drive screws. They are easy to remove even when rusty and 20 years old. The bit will not skip in a square drive, so they are faster to drive too. Some screws have combination square drive / phillips heads. You cannot use a square drive to remove a normal phillips head. | ||
| Merlin Moon (Mrmerlin)
Rating: N/A |
I purchase all my square drive screws from McFeelys: http://www.mcfeelys.com Although I try to put in screws where they won't show, there are just some places that it isn't possible. In those situations, I've used the little color-matched screw head caps. Makes a rather neat cover to what would otherwise be workshop looking cabinets. The screw head caps fit great in square drive screw head recesses. When working on all wood surfaces, I prefer to cut my own wood plugs and recess the screws, then shave the plug off before sanding and finishing. Plug cutters are available from McFeelys too. I'm not a pitchman for them, just a frequent customer. | ||
| Robert Wood (Bobwoodsocal)
Rating: N/A |
Thanks for the link Merlin. Bob |